Hello everybody -

I know this has been a pretty frequently recurring topic over the years, but thought I'd bring it up again since I've had a horrible time finding a reliable person/company to manage some properties in Baltimore City. Has anybody had any recent success that wouldn't mind sharing contact info?

Thanks,

Pablo

Ned Carey has that info in his blog. You might want to check that.

@Pablo Simmonds here is the blog post Ozzy referred to

https://www.biggerpockets.com/...

Keep in mind I have NOT worked with most of these. Please do your own due diligence. 

Thanks @Ned Carey and @Ozzy Sirimsi . I recognize some of the names on that list, though realize things can change over time. I'll start with this list though.

@Devin Moreno has a property management company and does a great job in Baltimore city

HI Pablo, I also live in New York and started using PropertyWize (on Ned's Post)for one of my properties in Baltimore City-Hollins Market area, and would say that so far it is working fairly well.  I have to stay on top of them, but they use a platform that makes it realtively easy.

Happy Thanksgiving all!

A lot has happened before and since I posted this. Thought I'd leave an update in the hopes of helping the broader community.

Headline: I have now liquidated all of my properties in Baltimore City. 

The Good: I ended up finding an excellent Realtor named Leon Robinson. He's born and raised in the city, and is willing to put in the work to make things happen. He's also investor friendly. A bit new to some of the more creative ways we may do things, but willing to listen and exchange ideas. I highly recommend him.

The Bad: I only ended up selling after more terrible experiences with property managers. My proerties were not in war zones, but my best guess is that property management is both easier (less time) and more lucrative (higher rents) in the county and more upscale areas of the city (Fells Point, Canton, etc). I would've been fine had these companies let me know that upfront and I appreciate the many that did. Unfortunately I ended up wasting years and about $45k (just this year) to ultimately come to this conclusion. As somebody that has invested in Baltimore for about 15 years, I understand there's some unwritten code that mandates  people not give negative press. But I think that's harmful to the general community. As such, I personally would not recommend the following (in order from most recent) and have kept documentation to back my rationale (in case this unwritten code is because of slander suits) :

• KMA Property Management: Seemed to do a good job turning over the property, but after ~4 months (COVID time included) never provided an applicant either of us thought was good and ultimately blamed it on bad blinds and a dirty floor (keep in mind I am an absentee landlord and did not hear these as issues until the end).
• Slatehouse Group: They had the property for ~3 months and never even got around to giving me an estimate for the turnover. When they finally sent me something, it was for a property I didn't even own.
• 
  
• Silverlake Management: I suspect this may be a decent company in the county that was just in over its head in the city, as I had a squatter situation that I don't think they quite knew how to handle. My gripe here was that they gave me a price to handle the situation, and then later gave me a price that was 7+ times higher. They had previously quoted me a price for some repairs and then upped it by 3 times.
• 
  
• Gregory Golding: This is a Realtor I listed with last year. He somehow let a squatter settle into one of my properties, which then started the downward spiral that made it harder for the above management companies.

Having said this, RE investing has been great to me throughout the years and I encourage all to keep at it as I do the same. Happy to share more of my experiences if it will help any.

In the meantime, I hHope you all enjoy this day with family.

Pablo

@Ned Carey take Seth Sherman off. Been gone from BP for years. I met him when I was new to the game. Interesting character..........

@Pablo Simmonds

This is helpful. I’m always looking for a good property management companies so good hear about others experience.

Originally posted by @Pablo Simmonds :

Happy Thanksgiving all!

A lot has happened before and since I posted this. Thought I'd leave an update in the hopes of helping the broader community.

Headline: I have now liquidated all of my properties in Baltimore City. 

The Good: I ended up finding an excellent Realtor named Leon Robinson. He's born and raised in the city, and is willing to put in the work to make things happen. He's also investor friendly. A bit new to some of the more creative ways we may do things, but willing to listen and exchange ideas. I highly recommend him.

The Bad: I only ended up selling after more terrible experiences with property managers. My proerties were not in war zones, but my best guess is that property management is both easier (less time) and more lucrative (higher rents) in the county and more upscale areas of the city (Fells Point, Canton, etc). I would've been fine had these companies let me know that upfront and I appreciate the many that did. Unfortunately I ended up wasting years and about $45k (just this year) to ultimately come to this conclusion. As somebody that has invested in Baltimore for about 15 years, I understand there's some unwritten code that mandates  people not give negative press. But I think that's harmful to the general community. As such, I personally would not recommend the following (in order from most recent) and have kept documentation to back my rationale (in case this unwritten code is because of slander suits) :

• KMA Property Management: Seemed to do a good job turning over the property, but after ~4 months (COVID time included) never provided an applicant either of us thought was good and ultimately blamed it on bad blinds and a dirty floor (keep in mind I am an absentee landlord and did not hear these as issues until the end).
• Slatehouse Group: They had the property for ~3 months and never even got around to giving me an estimate for the turnover. When they finally sent me something, it was for a property I didn't even own.
• 
  
• Silverlake Management: I suspect this may be a decent company in the county that was just in over its head in the city, as I had a squatter situation that I don't think they quite knew how to handle. My gripe here was that they gave me a price to handle the situation, and then later gave me a price that was 7+ times higher. They had previously quoted me a price for some repairs and then upped it by 3 times.
• 
  
• Gregory Golding: This is a Realtor I listed with last year. He somehow let a squatter settle into one of my properties, which then started the downward spiral that made it harder for the above management companies.

Having said this, RE investing has been great to me throughout the years and I encourage all to keep at it as I do the same. Happy to share more of my experiences if it will help any.

In the meantime, I hHope you all enjoy this day with family.

Pablo

Sorry to hear about your experiences in the city

I am curious about the locations thought, do you mind sharing couple of the addresses??

@Pablo Simmonds

Thank you for these suggestion, i am looking currently at Baltimore County and also for property management company, I have emailed a few that was on Ned’s blog, no reply yet. I have more questions for you, PMIng you. 

No problem, let me know how I can help.

@Sarah 'Sadika' J.

I have been working with Johnson Solutions for the last year and a half and have been relatively happy with them. They took on my property when others wouldn’t, fair price, good communication, and quality repairs. You can message me for details.